Summary
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Versehad many break-out moments, and few more so than whenSpider-Man Noirappeared. Sorry, Spider-Ham, but the grizzled monochrome variant Peter Parker, memorably voiced by Nicolas Cage, stole every scene.
Cage will return to the role in the first live-action streaming series of Sony’sSpider-ManUniverse:Spider-Noir. It’s an impressive ascent for the alternate Spider-Man and hard-boiled private investigator hardened by life in Great Depression-era New York. But while it sounds like a fresh and enthralling part of Sony’s expanding spider web, the lack of excitement is palpable.
Spider-Man Noir Breaks Through The Spider-Verse
Wherever I go, the wind follows. And the wind… smells like rain.
That’s a typical line from Spider-Man Noir inSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. The animated film was a revelation, praised for its bold, humorous story and stunning, kinetic animation. Its loving respect and healthy irreverence for its source material were irresistible. The concept meant it was packed with memorable characters, but only one won the quotability award: Spider-Man Noir.
Cage’s grizzled Peter Parker was a no-nonsense black-and-white character in the colorful world of Miles Morales. More brutal than his multiversal counterparts, Spider-Man Noir’s sardonic insights, delivered by Cage with a strong dose of Humphrey Bogart, gave glimpses into his existence in a gloomy alternate New York as he struggled to understand the color of the universe he’s slipped into and developed an obsession with a Rubik’s Cube. Spider-Man Noir was a brilliant addition to the film — and he landed so successfully because he really understood his assignment.
Now,Spider-Noiris set to delve deeper into this variant’s New York over eight episodes on MGM+. This time, Cage’sbroken down and bustedPI will be Ben Reilly — a name familiar from Spidey-history that avoids dragging Peter Parker into hard-edged territory. Other than that, it sounds like Noir’s life back home will be much as he described it inInto the Spider-Verse:
In my universe, it’s 1933, and I’m a private eye. I like to drink egg creams, and I like to fight Nazis. A lot.
Fans should be ready to see more of this alternate 1930s-styled New York in the series, packed with ambitious journalists and adversarial mob bosses. It’s a new universe based around a Spider-Man with clear momentum. But despite all the apparent positives, the series isn’t generating much buzz.
Spider-Man Noir Is Not The Peter Parker Fans Know
The multiverse is a wonderful thing, but it can be difficult to balance audience expectations. Tom Holland’s Spider-Man is the most successful live-action incarnation of the character in a pretty strong field. While fans wait to see what’s next for the MCU Spider-Man, Cage’s sideways version of the superhero might be too much to grapple with after the Parker team-up ofSpider-Man: No Way Home.
As fun as the hard-boiled Spidey-Noir was inInto the Spider-Verse, there’s no doubt he was a distinct variant. Noir was a brutal product of his universe (Earth-90214). In the comics, that meant a heavy dose of ethical and moral struggles (as referenced in the dialogue ofInto the Spider-Verse). On page, he was a Spider-Man who didn’t hold back on using lethal force when he was first bitten by a spider and set out to avenge the murder of his uncle Ben Parker and friend Ben Urich. Fans will have to wait for the series to see how the live-action Noir gained his powers and responded to them — but it doesn’t sound like it went well.
Have Fans Already Seen Enough Of Spider-Man Noir?
A huge part of Spider-Man Noir’s appeal inInto The Spider-Versewas his hard-boiled quipping. It’s not clear exactly how Spider-Man Noir can expand beyond that fish-out-of-water routine, even if he’s in the water of his own universe. In the busy and beautiful world ofInto the Spider-Verse, many jokes and references were chucked at the screen and most stuck, including Noir’s take on being Spider-Man. But the new series is, oddly, making the leap from animation to live-action.
Even if it was animated, it’s hard to imagine how the reality of a hero who lets ‘matches burn down to my fingertips just to feel something, anything’ will work over a series or whether that’s something fans are keen to see. Although the narrative backed it up, it’s notable that Spider-Man Noir barely got a look-in inAcross the Spider-Verse.
The Lord and Miller Question
Phil Lord and Christopher Miller signed a mega-deal with Sony in 2019 to bring the Sony Spider-Man Universe to small screens. Five years on, there are reports thatthe pair’s contract won’t be renewed. That comes on the back of the final film in theSpider-Versetrilogy losing its original release date and so far failing to find another. Rumors about the delay led composer Daniel Pemberton to vehemently refute claims thatBeyond the Spider-Versehad beenscrapped due to creative differences. On top of that,Spider-Noiris launching the Spider-Man Universe on streaming after the cancellation of themuch-anticipatedSilk: Spider Society.
Lord and Miller have an interesting history in Hollywood, where undeniable success (21 Jump Street,The Lego Movie) mixes with high-profile misses (Solo: A Star Wars Story). The pair’s first feature almost didn’t happenwhen they were fired onceand almost twice fromCloudy with a Chance of Meatballsin the early 2000s by, inauspiciously, Sony Pictures. The future of theSpider-Versefilm series and Lord and Miller’s role at Sony is unlikely to be causing too much caution in fans after what they achieved with theSpider-Versefilms. Still, the impression is that things aren’t going as smoothly as they could, especially given what’s happened recently in movie theaters.
Sony’s Stalling Spider-Verse
From one point of view, the Spider POV, Sony’s handling of theirSpider-Manrights has more than justified their reset following what some thought was the premature scrapping of Andrew Garfield-starringThe Amazing Spider-Manseries. Tom Holland’s appearances in the MCU films, which started withCaptain America: Civil War, and solo adventures where he’s dragged along Marvel stars like Tony Stark, Nick Fury and Dr. Strange, have enjoyed continual box office success.
Spider-Man is a good luck charm for the MCU. But the confidence it gave Sony to set up their own Spider-Man Universe has fallen legendarily flat. The studio’s rights provide access to one of the best character lists in comic books, but only theVenomandSpider-Versefilms have flown outside the core Spider-Man movies. Solo featuresMorbiusandMadame Webhaven’t just crashed but led Sony’s Spider-Verse to be called theworst comic book movies have to offer. It’s understandable if Spider-fatigue is hitting theSpider-Man Noirbuzz — but that’s probably more from the quality of output than the quantity of the web-slingers on screen.
Adding Color To The Noir
Despite the factors orbiting the new series, fans must wait and see howSpider-Noirturns out. Filming is set to finish in spring 2025, with a release date yet to be revealed, although it will fall after Sony’s latest attempt to broaden its Spider Universe on film,Kraven the Hunter. All eyes are on a movie that will provide a stern test forR-rated comic book moviesafter the mixed fortunes of 2024’sDeadpool & WolverineandJoker: Folie à Deux.
While fans don’t seem to be rallying aroundSpider-Noirat the moment, it’s a safe bet the wall-crawler will take things as they come. As he says inInto the Spider-Verse, ‘We don’t pick the ballroom. We just dance.'
